Blender

Example – A cube in blender with the dimensions 32x32x32, will equal a 32x32x32 cube in 001.

(Scale refers to the dimensions of your object, since the Scale can be set in Blender to any unit value it is best to disregard it until you better understand Blender.)

Specular Components – whilst using Blender and exporting via the DAE exporter, it should be noted that a specular component of 0 will automatically default to 40.

“Why is my model so much darker in 001?”

Blender has a material settings panel that can change the diffuse color of a model, which affects the texture. Setting the diffuse Intensity value to 1 in this right side dash Material Panel fixes this issue.

“How do I export an animated model from Blender so that I can import it into 001 Game Creator?”

The easiest solution would be to select the armature and then export it as a COLLADA (.dae) file (see image below for export settings):

Please note that the “Copy” option (bottom of second panel) should only be selected the first time you export, otherwise it can cause the texture to no longer display on the model. Blender also has issues importing COLLADA files so it’s recommended that you save your model as a .blend file before exporting so that you can easily modify your model later on if needed.

Also the Apply Modifiers can be checked if you have any modifiers like Mirror or Subsurface Division in your mesh and you want the final model to have them.

Wings3D

License: Free

Bone Based Animation Support: No

Scale: Unknown

Milkshape

License: Free

Bone Based Animation Support: Yes

Scale: Unknown

3DS Max Studio

License: Paid

Bone Based Animation Support: Yes

Scale: Unknown

Sketchup Make

License: Free for non-commercal use

Bone Based Animation Support: No

Scale: 105′ = 32 pixles

Export Format: .dae

Supported File Types

The following file types are supported for static models in 001 Game Creator:

.dae

.blend

.obj

.x

The following file types are supported for 3D animations in 001 Game Creator:

.dae

.x

Import 3D Models

Importing 3D Models into the Sprites editor works similarly to regular Sprites. Click on the “Add Animation” button to the right, then click on the plus (+) symbol and instead of selecting “Images Files” for regular 2D Sprites, select “3D Model” from the drop down menu instead.

Master Segments

When the “Master 3D Model” option is filled, “Master Segment” will be enabled in the animation list underneath “3D Model”. Master segments allow you to reference a track and sequence time.

Time Scale of Master Segments – 30 frames per second or 0.33 per frame within the Add Master Segment of 001

Texture Mapping

Color/Diffuse Mapping – is the base texture of the 3D model.

Normal Mapping (Optional) – is an optional texture used to add higher detail to the 3D model. Most commonly used to reduce the need of high poly models (thus conserving resources). With the introduction of 3D, Tile-Sets now support normal mapping.

UV Mapping is a way of mapping a 3D model in which you map each part of the 3D model into a picture, and this picture will be used as the texture for model.

Blender

Inside Blender, in Edit Mode, click on the faces you want to texture, press CTRL+E and click on Mark Seam. This will separate the selected face for a specific texture. Marked edges will become red. If you don’t mark seams for the faces you want, they may overlap with the same texture (sometimes you will want this).

Now open a new view UV/Image Editor, so you can see both the 3D view and UV/Image Editor on your screen. In edit mode, press Z to see wireframe mode, press A to select the entire model, press U to bring up UV options and click on Unwrap. This will generate the faces you need to create textures. You can alternatively use Island Mode in UV Editor to organize your model’s faces accordingly. You can rotate, move them around and even scale them at will, this will not affect your model.

On the UV view, click on UVs menu and click on Export UV Layout. This will export a picture with the exact layout for your textures. You can right click on each face in the 3D view and it will highlight where it is in your UV mapping, in case you cannot identify by looking at the UV faces.

After you’ve created your texture, go back to Blender and load the image you made by clicking on Open Image on the UV/Image Editor view. Press ALT+Z to preview your model with the texture. Change to Object Mode.

Now go on the Texture tab and press New to create a new Texture. Select Image/Movie type and load the texture image. Under Image Mapping options, set the Extension to Clip.

Then, go over Material tab and press New to create a new Material. Go back to the Texture tab and pick the texture you made from the texture selector. It should show a tick. This means your material is using this texture.

When exporting the model, it will use this material as a texture. You can tinker with material options to refine your texture and preview it by clicking on Material shading.

Bones

001 Game Creator allows a maximum of 40 bones per model. Please note that 001 Game Creator will only allow a bone to affect up to 4 vertices. For optimal versatility, please set aside 4 bones for holding points.

Vertices Count

001 Game Creator allows for a maximum of 65535 vertices per model 3D model. This allows for optimal performance in rendering a 3 Dimensional scene at any given time.

Polygon Count

Polygon count is a widely debated topic. For Tile-Set models (plants, desks, etc.) you should aim for as little polygons as possible, whereas Actor models (characters, vehicles, etc.) can use a little more. The recommended maximum polygon amounts for use in 001 Game Creator are listed below:

Holding Points

Holding points for 3D models in 001 Game Creator are automatically calculated based off the location and rotation of bones in the model, providing that bone has the proper name so that 001 can recognize it and generate the holding points for you. 001 supports up to 4 holding points per model, and the bone name must correspond to the holding point it represents. The name for each holding point must be exactly:

“Holding Point 1”

“Holding Point 2”

“Holding Point 3”

“Holding Point 4”

Orientation

An object’s origin is the point at which rotation occurs and the point at which coordinates for the model are read. For example:

The origin for Actors should be directly centred at the base of an Actor.

The origin for Items should be where you intend the Item’s holding point to be at to allow for direct snapping to holding point bones.

Holding Point Orientation

For best results it’s recommended you set up your Items to go along the Z+ axis. To ensure proper rotation for animations, the side you want for slashing or striking should be aligned to the X axis (see image below):

Holding Point 2

If you want a shield to display properly the top of the shield should be oriented to the Z+ axis whilst also facing X+. Make sure the width is aligned along the Y axis (have a -90 degree turn to the shield to make things simpler).

Holding Point 3

Is set at the belt of the model’s left side and has the same orientation alignment to display as Holding Point 1 or Holding Point 2.

Holding Point 4

Is oriented at the model’s back and should have the same alignment for weapons. Shields, on the other hand, align width-wise along the X axis and the front should face Y+.

Troubleshooting

“When I import as an .obj or .fbx my model is gray and untextured!”

Check the names of your files and materials. If there are any spaces in the file name, it will not be recognized due to the way .obj and .fbx import library coding works. The easiest way to fix this is to edit your material name and file name to instead use hyphens in place of spaces. (Example: 001 Gladiator.obj should instead be named 001-Gladiator.obj. The same method would be used in your materials names, which can be edited in your 3D rendering software of choice.)

“Nothing is showing up!”

Check your scale. If your scale is too small or too big then nothing will show up.

“I know animation is supported but how do I bring it to 001 Game Creator?”

To export animations it is best to have an armature for your 3D model. To export the armature and all children of said armature, you highlight your armature, hit export in Blender under file, then choose which format to export to. In that screen you scroll down and check the children and armatures boxes, also remember to check the boxes for materials and textures.

“I have multiple keyframe timelines in my animation, will 001 Game Creator import it properly?”

No. What you will have to do is bake your animation to a single timeline. To do this in blender open Pose Mode, Press A to select all of your bones, navigate to the Pose option in the bottom left and then go up to the Animation option. This should pull out the Bake Action/Animation feature. Select it and follow the options after.